Rangers head home

It’s Thursday, August 23rd. It’s a hot day. Unusual in the back half of this 2012 summer which has been mostly wet and cold for August. The bunkhouses are in the process of being cleaned. Backpacks cover every inch of the picnic tables. Laundry hangs on the line. It’s the final day for the Ontario Rangers at the Wade Lake Camp.

Tomorrow, the 21 rangers will ride to the Cochrane ONR station to get on the Northlander train or buses that will take them home.

After starting off the summer with competing macho attitudes, nearly half of the boys will cry on the platform station, says Andrew Swift, supervisor. He has seen it every year for the past seven years he has been at the camp.

“That’s when you notice how much of an impact we’ve had on them,” Swift says.

Swift is passionate about the Ontario Rangers. He believes the program is vital because it engages youth in an age of apathy and indifference. Swift credits the program for saving him and for giving his life focus when he worked as a ranger in 2006.

“It was the first time I received praise for doing good work, it gave me independence,” Swift says.

He is currently entering his honours year at Dalhousie University in Halifax. Afterwards, he plans to get his master’s degree in indigenous studies and climate policy; he plans to be a lawyer specializing in environmental policy and law.

“It is this job that has opened so many doors to me,” he says.

Swift highlights the benefits of the youth program and how it takes teenaged boys, mostly from cities, and transforms them. The boys leave with an increased work ethic, leadership skills, and team working skills. They learn how to take initiative and look after themselves. Some have never washed their own dishes, cleaned their own laundry, or even used a broom. For some, it is their first job.

“You have to learn how to problem solve... to critically think. You have to learn how to handle situations as they change, and how important it is to work together,” Swift says.

Wade Lake, Ontario Rangers Camp #5, was built in 1957, originally as a Chief Ranger Division Headquarters. In the 1960s, it started hosting the Junior Rangers program. Back then, junior rangers used to help fix roads, plant trees, and fight fires, says Jeff Thomas, camp supervisor.

Thomas has been involved with the rangers for the last 37 years. He witnessed the rangers program during its height when there were 52 camps throughout the province. Now, Wade Lake Camp is one of 13 left.

The rangers duties may have changed but the point remains the same. Teach the rangers life skills, give them an appreciation for the wilderness, and give them the tools to improve themselves and their lives.

Thomas is proud of the camp. He explains, in a matter-of-fact way, that the ranger program is the model for all other ministry youth programs in the province; furthermore, that Wade Lake Camp sets the standard for the program due to its long history and its natural assets.

“We’re the best camp in the province. Wade Lake is the model for the other [ranger] camps,” he says. “I’ve seen the other camps. This district is gifted in that it’s the largest and has the most variety of environment: ocean coast, boreal forest, Hudson Bay lowlands....its differences in wildlife, and in the types of communities around it.”

He points out that the seasoned and well-trained staff he has working under him and the permanent staff in Cochrane who support the program are instrumental in elevating Wade Lake camp as well.

Its natural gifts are in stark contrast to southern ranger camps where rangers work more on conservation and environmental rehabilitation due to the encroaching of cities into the wild, he says.

“It’s more natural up here, less urbanized. The boys get to see these amazing things up here. There are wilder camps further north like Mink Lake but the variety here trumps it.”

Thomas sees his job as connecting rangers to the natural world. At the beginning of the summer, the boys hand in all their electronic devices. This is getting more and more difficult each year.

“We want them to disconnect from urban life. Some haven’t seen the stars,” Thomas says. “We switch them off from electronic mode to touching, feeling, smelling mode.”

Thomas says this is important because it allows the camp supervisors to keep the rangers’ attention so they will look up and realize where they are in the hopes it will have an impact.

“As the decision makers of tomorrow, they will be able to make informed decisions because they’ve actually been here,” Thomas added.

**

The teenagers being interviewed unanimously agree that they do not want this summer to end.

Simon Cheng, from Oakville, described the experience as unforgettable. Like some of the rangers, he saw the Big Dipper constellation and meteor showers for the first time. He also wrote actual paper letters to his family for the first time.

“The best summer of my life,” says Simon Cheng. “My skills improved. I learned to live independently, to fend for myself....You finally understand your parents when they say you don’t own up to your potential.”

Cameron Tayfour did not want to come at first and when he arrived he was not happy.

“Everyone tried to be the alpha male at first,” he said. “But being here gives you confidence in yourself...It taught me to venture out.”

Tayfour barely knew how to use a lawnmower or how to do laundry. He didn’t know how to manage his time. His procrastination habits were so bad Tayfour’s mother sent him to boarding school because his grades were slipping.

He finished his work early now and is focused on what he wants from life. He hopes to continue what he learned at the camp back in Windsor.

The camp also teaches the boys respect for work, for their parents, and for their community.

“I’m definitely not as lazy as before,” says Lorenzo Beaudoin, from North Bay. “I didn’t take initiative before. I volunteer now.”

When he returns home he plans to stay as unplugged from technology as possible and visit his grandmother more.

The rangers also learn an intangible skill: pride at completing a task and having a sense of accomplishment.

“Looking back at your finished work, you’re relieved you’re finished and amazed how it looks. It’s a great feeling,” said Montana Strong, another Windsor native.

The highlight for the rangers was working Creefest and Gathering Of Our People in Moosonee and Moose Factory. They set up large tents and participated with the elders in preparation of traditional foods such as moose, sturgeon, beaver, and bannock.

**

There is a rumour among the boys that this might be Wade Lake Camp’s last year. While the MNR has not confirmed this, it is a fact that the ministry is facing more cuts to its budget.

As reported in The Toronto Star, Minister of Natural Resources Michael Gravelle confirmed in late June that the MNR would see ten per cent, $70 million, of its budget cut over the next three years.

Currently, the MNR’s budget is lower than it was during the early 1990s, according to a 2011 report from the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. Adjusted for inflation, the MNR’s 1992-93 budget was $795 million. This year it will dip down to $687 million and will continue to shrink until 2015.

As the province looks to cuts jobs and close offices, there simply may be no money left for the Ontario Rangers program. Which would have an impact on Cochrane and the surrounding area.

Simply put, the rangers are an economic asset to Cochrane because of their work in the area.

For Summerfest, the rangers cleaned up Commando Lake peninsula and set up the arena for the concert. At Claybelt Days, they cleared trails and shorelines and manned the activities.

They built tents and participated in Creefest and Gathering Of Our People. They worked on Lee Golf Course, digging out bunkers and helping with maintenance.

They helped clean up the Polar Bear Habitat.

During their canoe trips, they cleared trails and campsites along the river. They helped conduct scientific studies. This year, the rangers participated in sturgeon netting with MNR fish and wildlife technicians. They were the silent volunteers working all around Cochrane.

Most of the boys who applied to the program did so because it was recommended by someone who had already spent a summer as a ranger.

Scott Rutledge, a Sudbury native, applied to the camp because his father told him about it.

“It’s a life changer. You learn good work habits, you make good friends. I think it should be around forever,” Rutledge said.